Rotary engine.



PATENTED MAR. 19, 1907.

4 SHEETBx-SREBT l.

PATENTED MAR. 19, 1907. v

C. H. MILLAR.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY29.1904.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

fr/"news PATENTED MAR. 19, 1907.

C. H. MILLAR. ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED lJULY 29. 1904.

4 SHEBTSQSHBBT a.

PATENTED MAR. 19, 1907.

C. H. MILLAR.

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLIOATION FILED JULY29.1904.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

UNITED STATES CHARLES HERBERT MILLAR, oE

PATENT OFFICE.

ERviLLAGi-i, ,EoxRocic IRELAND. y

ROTARY ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 29,

To au wil/m llt )may cmbccru:

Be it known that I, CHARLES HERBERT MILLAR, a subject 'of His Majesty the King of Great Britain and Ireland, Aresiding at Ervillagh, Foxrock, in the county of Dublin, Ireland, electrical engineer, have invented a certain new and useful Improved Rotary Engine, of which the following is a specification.

This invention consists of the herein-described improved rotary engine, which is of the internal-combustion type driven by gas, petrol vapor, or other explosive mixture.

My invention is illustrated by the accompanying drawin s, on which-'- Figure 1 is 'a alf-sectional side elevation of my im roved engine. Fig. 2 is a sectional plan of t ie same on line C D of Fig. 1, butl Fig. 3 is a sec` with certain parts removed. tional front elevation of the same on line A B of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a sectional plan of the central portion of the same engine. Fig. 5 shows` in front elevation the v rotary portions of the same engine separately. Fig. 6 is an end elevation of the central plug part of the same engine, and Fig. 7 is a cross-section of the same plug on line E F of Fig; 4.

The same reference-numerals indicate the same or corresponding parts in all the iigures.

My improved rotary engine is constructed as follows:

The engine has four cylinders, (or there may be more than four cylinders,) marked, respectively, 1 2 3V 4, cast or otherwise fixed together and to a hollow axle 5. The cylinders, with the axle, are inclosed in a box-like metal case, (the main parts of which are marked 6, 7, and 8,) the sides 7 and 8 of which have bearings 9 10, in which the hollow axle 5 revolves. For convenience of manufacture and access tothe interior of the engine the said metal case is formed of two side plates 7and 8 and an intermediate ring or distancepiece 6, which fits between them, the bolts 11 connecting the side plates 7 and 8 and distance-piece together. The cylinders, which are` single-acting, are each fitted with a iston 12, which has 'ointed to its back en a piston-rod 13, whic latter at its outer end is forked andhas a cross-joint pin 14, which carries a roller 15, and on this joint-pin there are side rods 16 17, which connect the outer end of the piston-rod to a lu 18 cast on the adjacent cylinder. The rol ers 15 work round and bear against an elliptical curved track or rail 19 which is formed with the intermediate portion 6 ofthe enginecase. The joint-pin 14 projectsthrough the side rods 16 17 and toeach of these projecting ends there is fitted `a roller, (marked, respectively, 20 21,) which travel along a pair of guide-rails 22 23, formed, res ectively, on the inner sides of the sides 7 an 8 of the engine-case, yso as to draw the pistons partly lout ofthe cylinders on the outward strokes when starting the engine. The largler rollers 15 are always kept in contact wit the rail 19 when the engi-ne is running at its normal speed either by the Jforce of the explosions in the cylinders or by the centrifugal force acting on the pistons.

Each of the pistons 12 makes two inward strokes and two outward strokes for every revolution of the cylinders and hollow axle 5 about Ithe stationary plug-valve 24, hereinafterr described.` These movements of the pistons are due to the cylinders revolving in the center of the elliptical tracks 19 22 23, the curves of which the rollers 15, 20, and 21, ,connected with these pistons, Vhave to follow. The four strokes made by each of the pistons are as follows, reference being made to Fig. 1, namely: first, the inductionstroke taking place as cylinders move from G to H; second, the compression-stroke taking lace as cylinders move from H to I; thir the explosion or workingI stroke taking place as cylinders move from to J; fourth, the exhaust-stroke taking place as cylinders move from J to G.

rl`he inlet and exhaust valves are formed in the stationary plug-valve 24, which fits in the hollow axle 5 and 1s made taper, so as to take up for wear, and is `fitted with an adjustable screwed coll'ar 25 at its larger end, b which the fitting of the lug in the hollow ax e 5 can be regulated. rIhe plug-valvey 24, about which the cylinders and hollow axle 5 revolve, fits easily in the latter and is held stationary by an. convenient means, as by the bracket 26, w 'chfiixes the plug-valve 24 to the side 7 of the engine-casing. In the plugvalve 24 there are three side ports 27 2S 29, communicating with longitudinal passa es plug-valve 24. Of these ports that marked 27 1s the exhaustort for the products of combustion Jfrom t 1e cylinders, 28 :'s the inlet-port for the ex losive mixture to the c linders, and 9is t ei v'tion-port. From I. t e back end of each of t 1e cylinders there is IOO 30, 31 and 32, leading out to the end of t e A .iro

a port 33, leading tothe inner surface of the hollow axle 5, and'these ports 33 are at equal" valve 24 for supplying the explosive gaseous mxture to the cylinders and for igniting and exhausting the same ture supplied to the cylinders is compressed in them by the pistons and ignited by an electric spark, the sparking taking place in a sparking plug in the passage 32, said sparking plug beingof the kind generally used with internal -combustion engines, or any other suitable means may be adopted for obtaining the ignition.

The sparking plug is screwed or otherwise :fixed in the hole 32 in the plug-valve 24, so that the spark will take place in the ignitionport 29. As the cylinders revolve round the stationary plug-valve 24 their ports 33 will in successive order come opposite the ports 28 29 27 in the stationary plug-valve, so that they will', as above stated, successively draw in a charge of explosive mixture through the inletort 28, and then this' port will be close vand the charge `in the cylinder compressed by the back stroke of the piston, and

then the charge will be red as the cylinderport 33 comes opposite the ingition-port 29,

' thereby causing the piston to make its next forward stroke. Then the ignition-port will be closed and the exhaust-port 27 opened for the escape of the products of combustion as the piston returns, thus makin@f the complete cycle. 28, and 29 and the width of these ports are soproportioned as to give the proper openings and closings tog the ports 33 ofthe cylinf ders at the fproperftimes, as will readily be lengine-case.

understood. y

The cylinders are ke t cool by air circulatin pa t and around t em as they revolve,

. and or t 's purpose the sides 'Z 8 of the engine-'case have .large openings-such, for instance, as 34 35 36 37-in them at both sides to allow the air to pass freely thr'ough the Radiatin -ribs may, if desired, be cast onor fitted to t e cylinders, so as to expose a greater heated surface to the air and The explosive mix- The spaces between ie ports 27, f

assist the cooling. Power is taken from the hollow axle 5 through the sprocket-pinion 38, fixed thereon, or by any other convenient means, according to the purposefor which the engine is required.

If preferred, a smallfan maybe iitted in the end of the hollow axle 5, so as to revolve with it and drive a current of air through longitudinal holes which are bored or otherwise formed from end to end of the plug-valve 24, so as to keep the same cool. In the larger size engines fans can, if desired, also be iitted to the hollow axle 5 in such a way that they will drive a larger quantity of air through the engine-case to cool the cylinders and other working parts, Y

The accompanying drawings show what l consider to'be the best wayvof carrying my invention into practice; but it is to be understood that inv'invention is not limited to the precise details shown, as it will be evident that these may be varied to some extent without departing from the. nature of my invention.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A rotary internal-combustion engim` comprising cylinders revolving with a hollow axle about a stationary plug or valve said cylinders being arranged tangentially in relation to thea-xls, said plug or valve having inlet ignition and exhaust ports and passages corresponding with a port in each of the cylinders, means for igniting the charge in the l ignition port said cylinders having pistons provided with rollers which Work agalnst elliptical tracks in the casing which contains said cylinders and cause each piston to .make two outward and two inward strokes for each revolution of the cylinders, said ports and passages beng so arranged as to obtain the proper cycle of induction of gaseous mixture into the cylinders, compression, ignition and exhaust for each cylinder in successive order, substantially as set forth.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in rese/nce of witnesses.

HARLES HERBERT MILLAR. Witnesses:

RICH. MILLAR, JAMES CARTER, RICHARD CmirToRy MILLAR. 

